The Nibelheim incident
by Vagrant 66
Summary: Story adaptation of what really happened at Nibelheim five years before the game. Contains lots of FFVII spoilers. PART 3 NOW UP! Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

Part 1

In the rough grassland just beyond the carrot-coloured peaks of Cosmo Canyon, a truck restlessly made its way across to the small town of Nibelheim in the pouring rain. The vehicle jolted as the wheels made their way across the uneven and soaking ground. A large logo representing the ShinRa power company was tattooed across the side of the truck.

The sound of windscreen wipers and the occasional jolt echoed throughout the insides of the truck. A man in an armoured blue uniform sat in the front driving the lorry. In the back of the truck, there were four men; one an ill looking man in a uniform sitting down to one side of the truck on a crate, a tall man with long silver hair sitting calmly opposite him on another wooden crate, a man with spiky black hair standing in-between the two, and the fourth; another uniformed man standing up further down the truck.

The silver haired man, in his thirties, carried an air of superiority around him, sitting calmly, quietly and not moving an inch. He wore a black leather cloak around him, tightly wrapped around his waist by a metal buckle, his chest was bared in a v-shape due to this. He had a harness covering his abdomen decorated with the symbol of SOLDIER, the ShinRa company's most elite armed force. The harness had thin straps in the shape of an x covering his chest. Large curved white shoulder pads covered his shoulders and metal bangles were worn around his wrists and large black boots.

The black haired man had his spiky hair slicked back except for one strand that dangled in front of his face. A purple sleeveless shirt covered his chest and he wore his purple trousers that bunched out around the knees in a baggy Samurai-like way, matching his fighting style. A tall belt bearing the same SOLDIER symbol as the harness worn by the silver haired man, was worn around his waist, connected to straps that held his silver shoulder pads on each arm. The man had a youthful aura about him and seemed very energetic.

The men in the uniform were wearing standard blue ShinRa attire, with two metal shoulder pads on and bandannas covering their necks. The top halves of their faces were covered with a strange visor, with three red eye-like dots in the shape of a upwards pointing triangle. Their faceless appearances made them look like clones of the driver, each other and any other ShinRa MP. The MP sitting down was suffering from motion sickness and seemed very uneasy.

The MP standing up leant into the driver's compartment. He spoke quietly to the driver.  
"I can't believe we're on a mission with guys from SOLDIER!" He exclaimed. "I mean we get to meet Sephiroth, the legendary war hero!"  
He turned back to the rear.

"It's sure raining hard." observed the young black haired man. He glanced over to the uncomfortable ShinRa MP.  
"Hey, how are you doing?" he asked.  
"I'm all right." answered the MP unsurely.  
"I wouldn't know... I've never had motion sickness." The man pondered for a moment before turning back to the trooper.  
"Hey Cloud. If you're feeling sick, why don't you take that mask off?" He asked. Although the man was his superior, he treated Cloud like his equal, even learning the faceless soldier's name.  
"Yeah..." agreed, Cloud.  
Cloud pulled his helmet off revealing a shock of blonde hair, spiked similar to the black haired man's, but upwards as opposed to back. He held his helmet in his lap and leaned back, somewhat comforted, letting out a breath of relief.

The black haired man turned to the other ShinRa MP.  
"Everything okay?"  
Before the troop could answer, the silver haired man named Sephiroth looked up and gazed at the black haired man with bright green eyes.  
"Hey." The black haired man met his gaze.  
"Settle down." Sephiroth told his fellow member of SOLDIER.

The impatient man sighed and began doing squats to prepare himself for the upcoming mission.  
"They gave me new Materia. I can't wait to use it." He proclaimed excitedly, still doing his squatting exercises.  
"...Just like a kid." muttered the motionless Sephiroth. The lively young man stopped his squats to consider what was just said, but then changed the subject.  
"You going to brief us about this mission?"  
"...This isn't a typical mission." began the mysterious war hero.  
"Good…" Cloud muttered to himself, quiet enough so the two men from SOLDIER wouldn't hear.  
The black cloaked man continued. "Our mission is to investigate an old Mako reactor. There have been reports of it malfunctioning, and producing brutal creatures. First, we will dispose of those creatures. Then, we'll locate the problem and neutralize it."  
"Brutal creatures...Where?"  
"The Mako Reactor at Nibelheim."  
Cloud jolted and looked up when he heard this. The black haired man turned to him.  
"Nibelheim? Hey, Cloud, isn't that where you're from?"  
"Yeah." responded a bewildered Cloud.  
Opposite Cloud, Sephiroth nodded and said to himself:  
"Hmm... hometown..."

Before anymore could be said, a crash was heard and the entire truck rattled, coming to a stop. The driver swiftly turned back to his passengers in panic.  
"Sir...s, something strange just crashed into our truck!"  
Sephiroth quickly got to his feet. His fellow SOLDIER suddenly got serious and hastily gripped the hilt of the large sword strapped to his back.  
"That would be our monster..." Sephiroth announced.

The double doors at the back of the truck were flung open as the two warriors leapt out onto the rocky grey terrain at the edge of Mt. Nibel and into the pouring rain.

In front of the truck was a twenty foot dragon, covered in green scales. It was on all fours facing the side of the truck, like a lion ready to pounce, baring its huge claws and purple underbelly. The great beast's tail extends like a scorpion ready to strike and its mouth opens and closes showing glimpses of charred flesh dangling off its monstrous fangs. Two undersized wings poke out of the creature's shoulders, with a dull yellow flesh where a bird's feathers would be. Two menacing horns poke out of the side of the creature's head, rings of blood encircling each one.

The SOLDIER in purple clothing ran to face the gigantic creature, drawing his large bastard sword from his back. He held the sword in a Samurai style, placing his left foot forward and pointing his right foot out to his right, holding the great sword at a diagonal angle with both hands on the hilt. His trademark sword was immense in size with one edge flat and the other the blade. The actual blade goes up to meet the other side of the sword in the shape of a 90 degree angle triangle. This was the Buster Sword.  
Sephiroth walked over to face the monster side by side with his comrade. He placed his left hand on the hilt of his long sword: The Masamune. He drew it from his right side, it was shaped like traditional Japanese sword but was an incredibly long blade. Sephiroth held the blade up by his head and pointed the blade at his opponent from a horizontal angle. They stood together with rain dancing across their blades and splashing on their shoulder pads.

Cloud, the truck driver and the other ShinRa MP peered out from the back of the truck, impressed by the two SOLDIER's ability to wield such colossal weapons.  
"Wow! How does Zack hold that sword! It's huge!" marvelled the MP.

The gargantuan monster let out a deafening roar.  
Zack, the black haired SOLDIER ran at the creature, splashing on the rock floor with every stride, and tried to slash its chest with a large horizontal strike. The blade embedded into the creature's wet scales but didn't seem to cause it any real harm. Zack tried to speedily remove his blade but the dragon swung its head at him with full force. With amazing reflexes, the kind only those in SOLDIER have, Zack moved his right shoulder in the way of the blow. The horn hit his shoulder pad denting it and sending him into the air, sword and all. He flew back about three metres and landed on his feet. The second he did, the fiend went on the offence and began to shoot roasting flames out of its mouth. It swept its head from side to side pouring fire across the area. Sephiroth held his Masamune tightly and used the Materia slotted into it; the orb glowed with a shining green brightness. Two transparent pyramid shapes materialized before Sephiroth and Zack, blocking the flames from reaching either man.  
As the creature finished its assault, the magic barriers dissipated into thin air. Sephiroth let a sly grin creep across his face. He leapt towards the dragon, travelling to it in less than a second, his feet hitting the ground only once. He sliced through the humongous dragon's neck in an instant, cutting through scales, nerves and bone in a fraction of a second.  
The once great monster's head slid off of its neck and hit the ground with a mighty crash. The body followed straight after, its legs collapsing from the severing of its head.  
Sephiroth flicked the blood from his Masamune with a diagonal swing and sheathed it to his right. Zack slowly put his own sword onto his back, taken aback by Sephiroth's strength and ability. The two began walking back towards the truck.  
The ShinRa troops were in awe of what they had just seen.

As Sephiroth stepped in he told his subordinates:  
"Head on. We're nearing Nibelheim." 


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2 (Please R&R)

The group had reached Nibelheim just as the rain had stopped. The red tiled rooftops of houses were covered in a cold white light from the dull sky. Sephiroth walked to the town entrance, with his crew not far behind. Two white picket fences were to his sides, next to old brown barrels. A rusted pick-up truck was to his right. Zack, Cloud and the other ShinRa MP stopped a few yard behind Sephiroth. Cloud jolted realising what he had forgotten. He ran back to the parked ShinRa truck, grabbed his helmet from the compartment and put it on, before running over to his comrades again. Sephiroth turned and spoke to Cloud as he walked back over.  
"How does it feel? It's your first time back to your hometown in a long time, right?" He paused and thought to himself.  
"So how does it feel? I wouldn't know because I don't have a hometown..."  
"Ummm...How 'bout your parents?" questioned the uniformed Cloud. Sephiroth looked at the floor and put a hand on his chin.  
"My mother is Jenova. She died right after she gave birth to me. My father..." He stopped and still facing the floor began to shake his shoulders silently chuckling at something. He suddenly snapped out of his strange laughter and became deadly serious once again.  
"What does it matter? All right, let's go." Sephiroth turned his back to the men, awaiting Zack to follow him into the town.

"Psst..." The unnamed MP whispered. "You keep wandering around here and you'll get into trouble."  
"It's so boring, being on watch." Cloud told the MP and Zack.  
"You want to do what we always do?" asked Zack, always ready to relieve boredom. "Shall we practice?"  
"Practice...Oh, you mean practice my pose. Does someone in SOLDIER always have to be careful about what other people think? ...How did it go?" Cloud stood in a heroic pose, his chest out and his feet in a combat-ready position.  
"Was it like this?"  
"Good job!" Zack told him with a smile. Cloud relaxed.

Zack began walking over to Sephiroth towards the town.  
"The Mako smell is pretty bad here." Remarked Sephiroth as Zack walked past.

The foursome entered the yellow-soiled town centre. A large water tower with a fan sticking out the side stood on wooden stilts in the middle of the town courtyard, this was referred to as the 'well' to the people that lived here. The town was mainly made up of white two storey houses, with wooden beams across and red tiled rooftops, with different sized metal chimneys. Behind a row of houses was a large manor, shadowed by trees. Older than the rest of the buildings, it was surrounded by a wall and had a large gate in front of it. It looked like it had been empty for some time. To the right of the abandoned mansion was the path leading up to the nearby Mt. Nibel.

An inn was the nearest building to the ShinRa men, it was wider than the rest of the buildings. Sephiroth stopped outside of the inn.  
"We leave for the reactor at dawn. Make sure you get to sleep early. All that we need is one lookout, so you others, get some rest." He pushed the door to the inn open and then turned to the men. "Oh, that's right...You may visit your family and friends." He walked inside.

Zack sighed, and took in his surroundings. Cloud looked around nervously. The other MP shrugged and walked into the inn.  
"I'm going to go look for someone." Cloud told Zack.  
"Alright." acknowledged Zack. "I'll see you later." He walked into the inn.

Cloud looked around his hometown. He noticed there wasn't many people about and pondered whether it was because of the monsters, or because of the soldiers. He turned and faced the water tower. He closed his eyes and took himself back two years. He remembered that night under the stars when the girl he'd had a crush on his whole life: Tifa Lockhart talked to him the first time. He remembered a promise that he made to her. He remembered how he told her he was leaving town to join SOLDIER. Cloud brought himself back to reality and hung his head in shame, thinking about how he had never made it into SOLDIER and couldn't get further than the rank of a ShinRa MP. He thought about what he realised when he left his helmet in the truck. He couldn't let anyone here know about his failure. But Cloud knew that he had to see Tifa, one way or another.

Meanwhile, Zack entered the Nibelheim Inn. A bald old man stood behind a counter opposite the doorway, a flight of stairs was to the left of the counter. A more interesting figure stood to the side of the counter, a well built but aged man, with long grey hair in a small ponytail and with a bushy beard to match.  
Zack walked across the wooden floorboards, dully gleaming in the light from the lantern on the counter. The inn keeper looked up.  
"What do you need?" He asked.  
"Where's Sephiroth?" Responded Zack.  
"He's upstairs."  
"Hmm. Give me a room."  
"It's all reserved for you ShinRa people, so I don't mind."  
Zack nodded. "How is the town?"  
"A lot of monsters have been appearing in the last 12 months. Other than that, there's not much change. Nothing much happens in a little town like this. It was all right when they were building the reactor...While they were still building it. But once it was completed, it's been bad. Within a few years, all the trees on the mountain withered away. I don't know if the reactor was good or bad. I mean it's easy to say it was a bad idea now, but what can you do about it? Anyhow, we've got to get rid of the monsters. Then we'll be able to relax a bit..."

The man beside the counter looked up at Zack. He wore a brown leather jacket, had baggy light grey trousers and most notably wore a large scarlet cape.  
"Hmmm... Is ShinRa here to get rid of the monsters?" He asked the SOLDIER.  
Zack struck his usual SOLDIER pose, chest out, left foot forward. "And who are you?"  
"I am Zangan." He said proudly. "I travel around the world teaching children Martial Arts." The mysterious man crouched and then sprung up jumping right over Zack's head and landing behind him. "I have 128 students all over the world! In this town, a girl named Tifa is my student." He boasted to Zack's back. Zack thought to himself.  
"Didn't Cloud mention something about a 'Tifa'...?" He muttered before turning around to face Zangan. "Did you say Tifa?"  
"Tifa has good sense. She'll be a powerful fighter." Zangan leaped back over Zack's head. "I want to see some ShinRa techniques. And if you see anything you can use, you might want to incorporate some of my techniques. Well, good luck."  
Zack nodded and began backing away, he turned and started climbing the red carpeted stairs.

Cloud stepped out of Tifa's house. She wasn't in. He walked over to the house next door. The house that he used to live in. Cloud stopped at the door, his mother was the only person he felt like he could trust right now, the only person who could know about him not getting into SOLDIER. Cloud pushed the door open. He walked in and looked around. The floorboards gleamed and the house looked very clean. Two made beds were to the right of the entrance, across from them was a kitchen area. The bungalow was littered with decorative vases and picture frames.

Cloud cleared his throat. "Uh?"  
"Yes?" A woman wearing an orange dress with a white apron on walked around the corner. She had blonde hair, tied into a ponytail at the back, spiked up at the front, like Cloud's. The woman had a glow to her, a vibrant energy. She looked at the ShinRa MP. Even with his helmet on, she recognised him.  
"Cloud? Welcome home, Cloud!"  
"Hi, mom..."

Zack walked through the top floor of the inn. Sephiroth stood there in a hallway, still as a statue, staring out of the window deep in thought. Zack leant in trying to see what the silver haired warrior was looking at.  
"What are you looking at?"  
"...This scenery...I feel like I know this place..." Sephiroth told him.  
"Hmm." Zack leaned away and walked through the nearby doorway, leaving Sephiroth to his thoughts.

Cloud sat on the steps leading up to his kitchen, his helmet sat next to him. His mother stood staring at him.  
"Come, come... Let me take a look at you! Hmmm...You look so handsome." So is this a SOLDIER uniform?"  
"No, Mom, I..."

Zack looked around the room they were going to stay in, it had a serene atmosphere. The ShinRa MP was examining the three beds across from him.  
"We're short one bed..."  
"Hmm. I'm sure Cloud could stay with his family here. We'll be okay."

Cloud was resting, sprawled across his bed.  
"My how you've grown. I'll bet the girls never leave you alone." Said Cloud's mother.  
"Not really."  
"...I'm worried about you. There are a lot of temptations in the city. I'd feel better if you just settled down with a nice girlfriend."  
"I'm all right."  
"You should have... an older girlfriend, one that'll take care of you. I think that would be best for you." She suggested.  
"I'm not interested."  
Despite acting as if she was annoying him with constant questions, Cloud was glad to be home and glad to see his mother again, he hid his smile.

Back in the inn, Sephiroth turned to Zack.  
"...We have an early start tomorrow. You should get some sleep soon."  
"Yeah, let's get some sleep." Zack agreed. He began to walk away to his bed. When Sephiroth spoke again.  
"I've hired a Guide to the Mako reactor. I've heard she's young...I hope we can count on her..." 


	3. Chapter 3

**Part 3**

It was the morning in Nibelheim. Zack cursed himself for sleeping in as he rushed out the door of the inn. He headed up the steps at the north of the town, to the right of the ShinRa mansion. Sephiroth, Cloud and the other MP were there waiting for him, a villager with a camera in his hand stood in front of the ShinRa mansion's gate watching them, while another stood across from him.  
"...Late again." muttered a helmeted Cloud.  
"Once the guide gets here, we're heading out." Sephiroth announced as Zack reached the group. The nearby villager stepped forward, he was a forty-something man with brown hair and casual clothes.  
"Listen to me, Sephiroth. In case something happens..." As he started, a fifteen year old girl started running towards the steps.  
"...Trust me." Sephiroth told the man. The young woman ran up the steps and stopped. She had long dark brown hair going down to her shoulder blades, she wore a short sleeveless brown leather jacket over a plain white vest and a brown skirt with darker brown boots. The girl wore a dark brown cowboy hat over her head. Despite having a voluptuous figure, she had good strong arm muscles.  
"I'll be alright, Dad!" She told the man. "I have two men from SOLDIER with me." She turned to the group. "I'm Tifa. Nice to meet you!" Cloud jolted at this.  
"Tifa!" He exclaimed quietly. Cloud couldn't help but stare, even though it had only been two years since he last saw her, he couldn't believe how much she had grown up or how beautiful she had become.  
"You're the guide?" Asked Zack.  
"That's right." Responded Tifa. "I just happen to be the number one guide in this town."  
"It's too dangerous!" Cloud muttered.  
Sephiroth happened to hear this. He turned around and walked over to Cloud, before turning and facing the others.  
"Then there's no problem if you protect her." He told Cloud softly. "Let's go." He ordered the crew. The silver haired SOLDIER turned and began walking toward the mountain path when the villager at the ShinRa mansion gate ran forward.  
"Ummm..." Sephiroth turned to face him. "Mr. Sephiroth! Please let me take one picture for a memento!" The man turned to Tifa and motioned to Zack. "Tifa, can you ask him for me too...?" Tifa looked at Zack. He shrugged and gave the cameraman a 'why not?' look. Tifa ran over to stand by Zack. Sephiroth walked over to stand by Tifa. Zack folded his arms and smiled. Tifa, in the middle held her hat up to show her face and big red-brown eyes. Sephiroth just stood how he always did.  
"Cheeeeese!" The camera flashed brightly. "Great, thank you!" The cameraman began to walk away and said. "I'll give each of you a copy once I get it developed!"  
The group headed on to Mt. Nibel.

The air in the mountains was cold, chilling to the bone, no different than Cloud remembered it. The grey mountains were all dark and jagged. The entire area seemed composed of different spikes. The area was menacing, the peaks were surrounded by thick mist and the land below could not be seen through it. The menacing eyes of unknown creatures through cracks and caves watched the five people walk across the rocky paths. The group were heading to an old Mako Reactor the ShinRa had built on the mountain.  
Sephiroth took point, followed closely by Tifa, who had Zack behind her. The two MPs were bringing up the rear. They reached a long rope bridge going up from one peak to a higher one. The wooden planks across it were well worn and the entire bridge was swaying in the wind. Tifa began making her way across it. She turned to face Zack.  
"It gets harder from here! Follow me!" She ran across to join Sephiroth who was nearing the end of the bridge. Zack sped after them. As Cloud began running across the entire bridge started to wobble and the sound of the ropes coming loose could be heard.  
"Uh…The bridge!" Tifa shouted. The left rope snapped, putting the bridge on a big angle. Sephiroth gripped the unbroken rope with both hands and tried to keep his balance. Zack, grabbed on with one hand and got down on one knee. He grabbed Tifa by the wrist as she slipped and stopped her from falling. The two ropes holding the foot planks then ripped in half. The SOLDIER members managed to hang on to the rope as the part of the rope bridge they were on swung them into the mountain side.

Zack found himself lying down on a cliff edge, lower down the mountain. The young Tifa was beside him. He got up as Sephiroth came around the corner of the cliff with Cloud just behind him. Tifa climbed to her feet.  
"Everyone seems to be all right." Sephiroth observed. "Can we get back to where we were?" He asked Tifa.  
"These caves are intertwined, just like an ant farm..." She told him. "Oh, and Sephiroth...There seems to be one person missing..."  
"It may sound cold, but we've got no time to search for him. We can't go back now, so we must go on. We'll travel together from here."  
They pressed on, Sephiroth at the front, following Tifa's directions while Cloud and Zack followed behind her. The four climbed the mountain path up to a small cave entrance.  
A strange noise was heard, a high pitched screech. The three men drew their weapons. Two bird-like creatures with webbed wings looking something like stingrays flew around the mountain and toward the group. One swooped at Tifa ready to attack with its beak. Cloud jumped in front of her in a protective manner. Before the monster could strike him, it found the long, curved blade of the Masamune through its sides. Sephiroth had simply thrust his sword to his left and impaled the flying beast. He diagonally swung his sword twice, once to flick the skewered carcass from his blade and the other to flick the blood from it.  
The other creature swooped at Zack, who swiftly sidestepped the attack and chopped the fiend in half with a large vertical slice. Sephiroth and Zack sheathed their blades and nodded at each other to signal victory. They entered the cave.

The insides of the cave were green and populated by long and twisted stalagmites and stalactites.  
"What's this?" Zack asked.  
"A mysteriously coloured cave..." Tifa said as she looked around.  
"It must be the Mako energy." Sephiroth told them. "This mountain is especially abundant in it. That's why the Mako Reactor was built here."  
They carried on walking through the cavern. A green insect-like creature crept out from a crack in the wall behind the four. It had red eyes, four legs and crawled across the wall ready to pounce. As it advanced on the group, more and more of the creatures began pouring out of every crevice in the area. Zack turned around and saw the sea of green across the walls, creeping up on his companions.  
"Monsters!" He shouted, while taking the Buster Sword from his back.  
Sephiroth turned around and pushed through Cloud and Tifa, to stand by Zack's side, drawing his Masamune.  
"Kyuvilduns..." Tifa muttered.  
The closest of the creatures pounced at Zack with its spiny legs pointed at him. He jumped into the air, pulling his mighty sword behind his back, as he brought the blade over his head, its edge met the monster and cleaved it in two. He landed with his sword forward cutting another opponent dead. It was a move he called 'Braver'. As soon as he had executed the manoeuvre, he leapt back to Sephiroth's side. A line of the Kyuvildun monsters leapt up at the SOLDIER members, but Sephiroth cut them all to ribbons with a large horizontal slash of his lengthy blade. The tide of monsters began racing towards the four. Cloud stood firmly in front of Tifa, gripping the trigger of his assault rifle, ready to protect her. Sephiroth held his sword in one hand and a green orb slotted inside began to glow intensely.  
"Cover your eyes!" Zack shouted to Cloud and Tifa, putting his arm in front of his face. Tifa and Cloud did the same.  
Sephiroth stuck his right hand out and pointed his palm at the army of Kyuvilduns. Suddenly, plumes of concentrated blue lightning struck the crowds of monsters, the rock floor was being ripped apart by this powerful energy disintegrating the black cloaked man's opposition. Finally, an ark of the lightning emerged from Sephiroth's hand to kill anything left. He didn't blink as he watched the near blinding light obliterate his enemies, the dancing blue energy reflecting in his bright green eyes. After the attack, all that was left behind was huge chunks taken out of the floor and smoke. Not even the ash of the creatures had survived the onslaught. Cloud and Tifa looked on at what Sephiroth had done, they couldn't help but be mesmerised by the silver haired man's power.  
"Let's move on." said the SOLDIER. Zack nodded. The group continued on, following a gleaming light from another part of the cave.

They found themselves in a very strange area. Although inside a cavern, the area was filled with light brown roots spreading across the ground and trees, with the occasional green leaf. In the centre was a shimmering stream of emerald coloured light. It poured down from the cavern ceiling to the top of a bizarre naturally formed fountain made of rock in a pool of green liquid.  
They stopped to marvel at this sight.  
"...And what's this?" asked Zack. Sephiroth turned his head to his partner.  
"A Mako fountain. It's a miracle of nature."  
"It's so beautiful..." remarked Tifa. She walked over across the roots to take a closer look. She turned to face the men. "If the Mako Reactor continues to suck up the energy, this fountain will dry up too..." Sephiroth walked over to join her. He looked at the end of the green light; there was some kind of shiny crystal forming where the green light met the rock formation.  
"Materia." Sephiroth informed them. "When you condense Mako energy, materia is produced. It's very rare to be able to see materia in its natural state." Zack stepped over to look at the radiant formation.  
"By the way...Why is it that when you use materia you can also use magic too?" He asked. Sephiroth quickly turned to him.  
"You were in SOLDIER and didn't even know that?" He remarked. "...The knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the materia." He made a motion with his hand. "Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land and the Planet. That knowledge interacts between ourselves and the planet calling up magic...Or so they say."  
"Magic...A mysterious power..." Zack commented.  
"Ha, ha, ha!" Sephiroth laughed, bouncing his shoulders. Zack turned to him.  
"Did I say somethin' funny?" Sephiroth shook his head.  
"A man once told me never to use an unscientific term such as mysterious power! It shouldn't even be called 'magic'! I still remember how angry he was."  
"Who was that?" Zack asked, somewhat irritated.  
"Hojo of ShinRa, Inc. ...An inexperienced man assigned to take over the work of a great scientist. He was a walking mass of complexes." Tifa having been examining the liquid around the rock looked up.  
"A Mako fountain...So this is where the knowledge of the Ancients is."  



End file.
